_Fairfax's Tasso._--In my copy of the second edition, 1624, the first
stanza of the first book is given precisely as in Mr. Knight's reprint. But
in the very beautiful edition published by Bensley, 1817, and edited by Mr.
Singer, that stanza which T. N. terms an "elegant variation," introduces
the canto. The editor's preface states that the _first_ edition, 1600, had
been followed in that re-impression, "admitting some few corrections of
errors, and emendations of orthography, from the _second_, I printed in
1624." Of this second edition it is remarked that "it appears to have been
revised by some careful corrector of the press; yet nothing material is
changed but the orthography of particular words." No notice is taken of the
difference between the first stanza of the second edition, and that of the
first edition, identical with the cancel in T. N.'s copy. Possibly, _both_
the copies of these two editions, which happened to come under the editor's
notice, had this cancel, and so presented no variation from each other. If,
however, _all_ the copies of the second edition contained the stanza as
given by Mr. Knight, and Mr. Singer's opinion (drawn from the dedicatory
verses to Prince Charles, prefixed to _some_ copies of the second edition)
that this edition _was_ seen, and probably corrected, by the author, be
well-founded, it would seem to follow that Fairfax finally preferred the
stanza in this its first and later state, and as it appears in Mr. Knight's
edition. If the "cancel-slip" be an "elegant" variation, may not the
original stanza be regarded as more vigorous?